Job Discussion Forums

[Yu]

I frequently would encounter real words on the papers of my students that were words I did not know of, and when I looked them up in the dictionary, they were being used appropriately.
I am referring to students who are attending TOP universities, Jiatong university, in my case. My students were studying (memorizing) GRE vocabulary to prepare for taking the test. Many of them learned words that I do not ecounter frequently.
I think that if you want to teach at a school like Fudan you should also realize that you are going to be teaching pretty good students who have aspirations of studing abroad that are likely to be realized. Part of teaching at ones of these schools is going to involve students asking you questions about some of these words that I also likely only learned for taking GRE, which, by the way, I did not even attempt to prepare for, so many of those words were ones that I bypassed.
How many native speakers do you know who think memorizing the dictionary is a good way to learn English? Not many? How many Chinese students use this method? Too Many.

[restless]

Yu,

[Yu]

I am not ABC... just a plain old white girl who happened to marry a Chinese guy....hence the name.

[restless]

hi yu
ok that answers that one
i've just hada a squizz a t the text book, yikes that's pretty tough to translate into modern langaue acuqisiton methods
lots of grammar and translation
this is what i find the hardest sell, bridging the gap between the translation ex' and getting into real life text / communication and i do think the focus on meaning or extra lingusitic levels of lanauge
will get the learner closer to functioning in l2 (if that's waht they want)

only how do i do that in this context?

[Shan-Shan]

restless,

You'll soon realize that no amount of training will guarantee success in your English classroom. The methods you've been trained in are better conceived of as lego blocks that can be rearranged to suit the goals and expectations of various teaching circumstances. Your ability to be critical of methods, adapt methods, and devise ways of teaching with a basis in reading and experience are your real pedagogic tools.

The greatest benefit your TESOL training hopefully bestows upon you is consciousness. Self awareness of what works, what doesn't, and what can be modified is a greater asset than any adherence to a "methodology" which will, as is the trend in English teaching, become obsolete in the coming decade or so anyways.

You've yet to set foot in the "Ivory Shanghai Tower". It is there where your teaching and learning to teach will commence.

[Yu]

Trial and Error are my best ways to figuring out what works....
I am still working out that whole process.

[restless]

thanks for everyone's input, guess you're all on vacation now, does nayone know when uni semester starts (classes commence in September?)
is espresso coffee avaialble in sh?

I never did get to see copy of my contract, the waiban forgot to add the attachement

does anyone notice whether they use the functional grammar stuff they were taught at a western uni? or is china on the old trad. grammar style?

i just hope the trial and errors are not too big, and there is some enjoyment in the process is that why so many of us are in this

[laodeng]

Furriners don't usually teach grammar. But you may be the exception. And good luck with the Koreans.

No shortage of espressos, lattes, cappucinos, etc.